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Friday, January 2, 2015

21 Day Fix Approved Quinoa Tacos

I'm obsessed with this recipe! I found a version of it on Pinterest a while ago and just today decided to make it my own! I'm so excited with how it turned out! Keep reading for the full-recipe.

ps, this is carnivore-loving boyfriend approved ;)

What you will need:

*1/2 onion chopped (smaller the better and I used a white one)

*1 medium chopped bell pepper (I used red)

*1 cup uncooked quinoa (I used white)

*1/2 package of Mexican style Smart Ground veggie protein crumbles

*2 cups tomato sauce

*4-5 minced garlic cloves

*2 tbsp chili powder (you can use a little less)

*2 tsp cumin (this is strong, again you can use less)

*1 tsp onion powder

*4 blue containers of shredded vegan cheese (I like Daiya)

My Favorite Veggie "Meat" Brand

Let's get cookin! First you will want to cook the quinoa according to whatever brand directions you have. It's basically the same as cooking rice (1 cup dry is 2 cups water). Preheat your oven to 350 in the meantime and spray a large pyrex dish with cooking spray. Chop your onion and bell pepper. Use a splash of olive oil with your minced garlic and add the 1/2 onion for several minutes. I like my onions very soft, so this is up to you how long you want to keep them in there. Add the bell pepper for a few minutes, then proceed to stir in the protein crumbles. You can definitely add a little cayenne if you want to kick it up a notch! This is when you also add all the spices, then pour in the tomato sauce and stir to perfection. When the quinoa is done, add that as well. I also added 1 blue container of the Pepperjack after I took the mixture off the heat. Now you're ready to put the mixture into your sprayed pan!

Smooth the veggie goodness so it's somewhat even, then sprinkle the remaining 3 containers of whatever cheese you desire on top. Cover with foil and bake for around 20 minutes. It should be ready after that, but if you want the cheese to be super bubbly and delicious (vegan cheese takes longer to bake), remove the foil and cook for 5-10 minutes longer.

TA-DA!! Quinoa-Veggie Perfection!!

Now get out those corn tortillas, heat them up, and scoop that deliciousness into 2 of them!

Note: I should have chopped the onion and bell pepper smaller so it wasn't in large chunks.

I added 1/4 ripe avocado to my tacos--always makes any dish more amazing, and adds another healthy fat to the dish!

The finished product: you can also add vegan sour cream! This was just a few spoonfuls! Of course, I had to drizzle my favorite hot sauce, Sriracha on top! This was incredibly satisfying and filling. Who knew that portion control could be so easy and delicious?!

I hope you all enjoyed this recipe! If you are going to try this version out, message me and let me know how you like it! Happy cooking :)